Thoreau’s Case for Political Disengagement by Carl Bankston

In the article â€Å"Thoreau’s Case for Political Disengagement,† the author, Carl Bankston, examines Thoreau’s portrayal of having a moral conscience while being controlled by society. The author distinctly explains Thoreau’s ideas, while also giving his own opinion on the subject. Absorption in civic involvement, from the point of view Thoreau gives us, dimin-ishes the independent self and therefore diminishes the ability to think for oneself, which is necessary for the use of the full range of moral judgment. Moral judg-ment, in turn, is essential for true service to civil society. Paradoxically, only those who resist the state serve it with their con-sciences, and only those who hold them-selves apart from civic cooperation can improve the†¦show more content†¦They are not going to let anything get in the way of their moral decisions. They are all just willing to go against society to be able to use their consciences. They are seen to be â€Å"treated as enemies† for the fact that they are not going to change their opinion, although society wants them to. Thoreau presents the concept that people who work for society, only think based on political conscience. In the passage, it shares â€Å"Others, as most legislators, politicians, lawyers, m inisters, and office-holders, serve the state chiefly with their heads; and, as they rarely make any moral distinctions.† (P.3) All of the jobs listed are employed within society. All of their jobs depend on them knowing the laws of society. They even make their moral decisions based on their perception of the opinion of society. In some circumstances, Legislators will make moral decisions for the greater good of the community. Thoreau depicts the soldier as an individual that who uses neither political nor moral conscience to make decisions. The passage says, â€Å"The mass of men serve the state thus, not as men mainly, but as machines, with their bodies.† (P.3) Considering the government tries to transform the opinions of the soldier, they do not have an opinion at all. When using the word â€Å"mass† to describe the group of soldiers, the definition of the word brings up the idea that it is a larger body of matter with no shape. Society expects every soldier who joins the army toShow MoreRelatedChristopher Johnson Mccandless s Transcendentalism2535 Words   |  11 Pagesrelies on nature to help him survive, so that he recognizes the importance of nature. In addition, Henry David Thoreau had a strong bond with Emerson and his writings. To tell the truth, Emerson’s â€Å"Nature† became the major point of Thoreau’s work. In Understanding Thoreau’s â€Å"Civil Disobedience† which is published by Andrew Kirk, it is explained that â€Å"For Emerson, nature was the supreme determining force in human lives. Thoreau was to make the study of nature the central theme of his work, although paradoxically